Andy Flower the first to fall in England shake-up after dismal Ashes tour

ENGLISH cricket made its first move after the disaster of the Ashes whitewash by removing Andy Flower from his role as Team Director.

Andy Flower is the first loss of England's shake-up but won't be the last [GETTY]

He lost his job as boss of the England Test team after a debriefing on the winter tour with new ECB managing director Paul Downton.

The revelation came just weeks after Flower had insisted he wanted to continue --- but cricket bosses decided the side needed a fresh face at the helm and fresh ideas.

Ashley Giles, head coach of the England ODI and T20 teams, was the immediate favourite to take over the Test side as well. But former South African batsman Gary Kirsten, who impressed as coach of India, could also be a candidate.

Flower is the first casualty of England’s horror tour --- but he won’t be the last.

Batting coach Graham Gooch and fast bowling coach David Saker will also have their positions scrutinised. And it remains to be seen what captain Alastair Cook makes of events.

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Ashley Giles is a possible candidate to take over the Test side [GETTY]

Another intriguing aspect is how Flower’s departure will affect the future of star batsman Kevin Pietersen. The relationship between the pair had become strained, and there was widespread speculation that KP’s England might be finished.

Will that change now? The answer will be known soon enough because the next England selection - for the World T20 tournament in Bangladesh in March - is due to be announced in the next few days.

Alastair Cook is likely to remain captain of the England side despite the heavy defeat in Australia [GETTY]

Whatever the future for KP, it should be acknowledged just how outstanding the record was for England under Flower before the recent catastrophes.

Under his direction they won three Ashes series, including a first triumph Down Under for 25 years. They became the No.1 ranked side in the world in all three forms of cricket --- Tests, one-dayers and T20s.